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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23370976">Control</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/TigerNightCat/pseuds/TigerNightCat'>TigerNightCat</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Final Fantasy Shifters AU [6]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Final Fantasy XV</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - Shifters, Gen, Master/Pet, Master/Slave - Non-BDSM, Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, mild descrption of violence with a knife</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-03-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 04:47:22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,157</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23370976</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/TigerNightCat/pseuds/TigerNightCat</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>"Control the kids and you control the cat. I didn't believe it at first, but here you are, as docile as a kitten. You wouldn't do anything to jeopardize the kid's life now would you? That's a good girl. Stay down and we won't have to hurt him anymore."</p><p>Lilly may be in over her head this time.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Final Fantasy Shifters AU [6]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1277252</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Control</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>"Control the kids and you control the cat. I didn't believe it at first, but here you are, as docile as a kitten. You wouldn't do anything to jeopardize the kid's life now would you? That's a good girl. Stay down and we won't have to hurt him anymore."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She wouldn't either. Lilliana wouldn't do anything to raise the ire of their captors any further. They had already knocked the Prince unconscious and threatened to hurt him more if she did more than hold onto him. They were waiting for something, but she wasn't sure what for. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Ah there you are. Toss them to her. She can put them on herself. No need to get in range on those claws."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She used her body to cover as much as she could of her Master as the thugs tossed things down near her. She didn't want them to lay a hand on him anymore than they already had. She had no way to wake him up and make sure he was alright. She had no healing magic or any magic at all except her shifting, and that was useless here with him unconscious. If he was awake she could probably do something to get them away from here, but as it was, they weren't going anywhere anytime soon. She just hoped he wasn't hurt too badly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She glanced at the things they had tossed at her. They were a bunch of cuffs and a vest of some kind. Looking back up at the man he barked at her "Niff tech at it's finest. Put those on. Can't have you getting any ideas now can we?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She glared at the man but slowly reached for the cuffs. She wouldn't risk her Master. She was already wearing a pair but they were just for show. Noctis never turned them on, even during public events. Slowly and carefully removing her current cuffs she replaced it with one they had tossed at her and felt the sharp bite of magic as her strength started to drain away bit by bit. Putting on the second one increased the drain rate but it wasn't enough to make her worried yet.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"All of them." He barked after she hesitated a moment too long.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gently she laid her Master on the ground, making sure his head didn't touch down too hard and that he was still comfortable. As quickly as she could she put on the two ankle cuffs. The bite was even stronger from those two than the wrist cuffs.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She hesitated at the last piece, but at the sound of a gun cocking, she grabbed it quickly. Holding it up she found it to be a vest of some kind. It looked like it was made out of light material but when she held it, it was a lot heavier than it should've been, even with the strength draining properties of the cuffs being active. Slipping it on, she zipped it up fully at the command of the man. The zipper clicked and when she tried to unzip it, the thing wouldn't budge.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The thing was heavy even on her body, but it didn't drain her strength like the other cuffs did. She wondered if it was just a weighted vest to slow her down when the man chuckled evilly. "Oh look at that. I forgot to turn it on."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She only had a moment to process what he had said before she blacked out from the instant pain. She came to a moment later, laying on her side and looking up at the grinning man standing over her. "Looks like it works just as promised. You're as tough as he said too. I thought he was exaggerating you're response times and would've bet you'd be out longer."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She groaned quietly and struggled to sit upright again. Her body and limbs felt like lead weights when she moved and her torso alone felt like she was carrying Gladio from the heaviness there. She could tell the others around her were enjoying watching her struggle. They didn't stop her though and she powered through the draining and the pain. She finally got upright and the man backed away out of her reach, not that she could do anything to him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She kept a close eye on the other people in the room as she reached for Noctis. The vest and cuffs must have been on full power because when she tried to lift her Prince back onto her lap, she almost couldn't do it. The man couldn't weigh more than 200 pounds on his heaviest days and she could, and had, lifted him with one arm on more than one occasion. Just how strong were these things?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Oh. One more thing. Keep him quiet too. My men have jumpy trigger fingers and can't tell if it'd be you making noise or the boy. Better keep him safe by just keeping him quiet." The man called out before walking through the door to the area.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She looked around at the others in the room and some of them were smirking at her. Others looked bored. As soon as their leader left the room they started talking. "Why do we have to watch them both? Just kill the animal, take the boy and go."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Another hissed at him to quiet down. "I hear he's actually not the target. He's just collateral. We're getting paid good money to keep them alive no matter who the target is." Her master wasn't the target? Then who was?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Noctis gave a soft groan from her lap and she immediately turned her entire attention onto him. His eyes shut tight and then slowly opened. "Prom?" He asked groggily. Groaning again his eyes focused upon Lilly above him. "Lilly? What?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She put one hand to her lips and held the other up in front of her in a stop motion. She made quiet shushing sounds trying to get him to settle and not panic.  She glanced around and saw the others watching them intently. One even had his gun halfway raised to a firing position.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She snarled at the man and covered her Master reflexively. The man's eyes narrowed at her and he raised his gun even more.  Noct took the hint and stayed quiet, looking around himself. "Lil. What?" he whispered to her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She shook her head minutely and gave him a quick hug. "Later" she breathed out into his ear without moving her lips. "Stay quiet. Survive first, ask later. They don't want us dead, yet. Are you alright?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Do you hear noises over there? I distinctly remember hearing an order to shoot first if we hear sounds from the animal." One of the guards loudly stated to the others. He checked his gun's round and sighted upon the Prince's leg.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>No!</span>
  </em>
  <span> Lilly curled around Noct as much as possible covering his head and torso with hers. She couldn't help a small whimper that escaped her body as she waited for the sound of a gunshot.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Nothing happened though. She waited long moments but no sounds reverberated through the room. She cautiously looked up and saw all the men grinning at them trying to hold back their laughter. "She's so easy to read." one of them choked out unable to hold back any longer.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Growling low, she wanted to get up and teach that man a lesson. Unfortunately both the Prince and the cuffs held her back. He sat upright slowly and maneuvered himself in front of her before she could stop him. He gave her a pinched smile, ignoring their captors, and inspected her appearance. He ran a finger down the edge of the vest and held up her cuffs to inspect them closer. He frowned at her grimace when he gave her an inquiring look.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The men around them were growing more agitated by their movements but their orders were to shoot if they talked. Since no sounds had come from the pair yet, they couldn't shoot them as a few of them wanted too. The door opening startled all the men to attention and made Noctis turn to protect Lilly from whatever was coming. He figured out early on that she couldn't even hold a candle to her previous strength and surmised he was actually the strong one of the two for once.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The man who came through the door was not at all who they had expected. Ardyn Izunia, Chancellor to the Niflheim Empire, and the main pain in Insomnia's side, came flouncing through the open door and looking like the world's most put out estranged uncle.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Your Highness! I came as soon as I had heard one of our trapper ships had accidentally caught a human of your description while chasing a feral animal. I didn't believe it at first, but here you are!" Lilly didn't think his arms, or scarves, stopped moving the entire time the birdman spoke. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He scoffed at the guns in the hands of the guards. "Put those away. You wouldn't want to hurt anyone here." Turning his attention back to the Prince he tried to look apologetic, "I am very sorry about this Your Highness. Come with me and we will get this sorted out and get you home as soon as possible."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The man lifted the Prince to his feet and ushered him out of the room before either Noctis or Lilly could react. She didn't like it at all, but at least one person recognized her Master, so he was probably safe now. Even if he wasn't in the best of company. Looking around the room she counted the remaining guards. Still six of them unfortunately. All with those big guns. At least she didn't have to worry about getting the Prince in trouble any more.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Now that she could take a moment to study her surroundings, it sounded like they were in a ship of some kind and not just a land vehicle. That meant that the guns they were holding were probably for show only. No one in their right minds would fire a gun in an airship. That was tantamount to sudden death if a bullet hit something vital. And on that note, she decided she was going to test these bonds they forced upon her. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Stretching her arms high above her, she tested just how weak she felt just moving around. Her arms were so much heavier than they should've been. To the dismayed shouts from her guards, she attempted standing. That didn't go over so well. Her legs couldn't hold her so she fell back to the ground hard. She glared hard at the ankle cuffs wanting to rip them off, but if they were anything like the other Niff made cuffs she'd been forced to wear, they would have a fail safe that would hurt like a behemoth bull charging her. She had that happen once. She did not want to repeat the experience.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>One of the men ran to get the man in charge the moment she started moving, while another man walked up to her and grabbed a wrist, pulling her off balance. "You should stop that immediately." </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Taking a look at the young man, she sneered "Why? You'll shoot me? I'm not scared of your bullets, boy." He was a lot younger than all of the other men in the room she noticed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He seemed taken aback that she would dare to address him but recovered quickly. "No. There are other ways to keep you in line without shooting you." He yanked her just a bit more off balance while putting his gun securely in a holster behind his back. He drew out a wicked looking sharp knife and brought the edge to her hand. He slowly started pushing it's edge through her skin and she had never been so glad that Justice and Prompto were such klutzes during training. She had way too much practice ignoring painful stabs, all the while staring the human in the eye without flinching. Her breathing did quicken a bit and a sheen of sweat broke out on her brow while she fought the pain off. It wasn't easy and with the cuffs draining away most of her powers, she couldn't feel her healing powers start on the destroyed nerves.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She made the mistake of glancing at her hand only once. It was a big knife and she had a small hand. If he wanted to, he could've cut her hand in half by just twitching the knife when it was fully sheathed within her. If she wasn't trying so hard to pretend to not be impressed by it, she would have been completely awed by how deep he got the knife without hitting anything vital. Yes is hurt like crazy, but the angle and sharpness of the blade was so precise that she would probably get the use of her hand back relatively quickly once she was out of this situation.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Hey Kid!" A sharp, vaguely familiar, female voice called out. "Boss said to keep her intact, you're pushing it there."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"I'm just showing her why she needs to obey someone else for once." Thankfully the kid didn't startle and jerk the blade. He just ever so slowly removed it from her hand and threw her back down to the floor where he first found her. "First the hand, then the shoulder, then the thighs avoiding the arteries. There are tons of places to pick at and keep her intact." Was this guy familiar with her in some way? He seemed to know she only obeyed Noctis without a reason.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Yeah, yeah. The boss wants her in working shape, not a bloody mess. So put your toothpick away and toss your cat toy in a holding cell until we land." The woman seemed to be helping her in some way? Why was her voice so familiar? Lilly just couldn't place it as the pain from the stab was not getting any better. Blasted Niff-made Cuffs cutting off her healing abilities.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She curled around her hand protectively and watched the two's exchange. The boy rolled his eyes at the woman and twirled the knife skillfully between his fingers. The knife stilled suddenly with the tip pointed towards Lilly. "You do it then. Use your womanly charms and move her yourself."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"You did not seriously just say that. I'll show you my charm when I beat you on the training field. You seem to need it, again." She waved her hand dismissively. "Get out of the way kid."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The woman knelt down by Lilly and looked her in the eyes. "You ready to listen, KitKat? You look tired. And a bit out of it. Can you focus on me?" she asked Lilly softly, holding a finger in front of Lilly's face. Lilly blinked at the woman still not able to place her and not focusing on the finger. Louder, she barked "Tummelt. What did you give her?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lilly's eyes narrowed a fraction. Only one person called her KitKat. Who was it again? Wait a moment. Give her something? She was feeling a bit foggier than earlier but she had chalked that up to blood loss and pain from being a knife sheath.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The boy shrugged nonplussed. "Just a little sleeping drought on the edge of my blade. Didn't want her getting in the way or struggling. It won't hurt her."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hearing the human growl was kinda funny. Like she was pretending to be a shifter. It was cute. "Let's get you to a nest in the other room. Then we can see about finding your litter mates my dear." The woman scooped Lilly up in her arms before the shifter could resist. Not that Lilly could resist any. The drugs were kicking in and she was barely keeping her eyes open and couldn't focus well on anything. The last thing she remembered seeing was the male human leading the way out of one door with the woman carrying Lilly following close behind.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>********</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lilly didn't want to wake up. She was tired and comfortable, if a bit chilled. There was this beeping that was driving her mad though. Why wouldn't it stop? Noct or Prom must've left their alarm on and forgot to shut it off again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"What do you mean they want it back? They can't have it back. Not after it being missing for so long!" A man was practically yelling. "My experiments can finally resume now that I have it. They aren't getting it back."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That wasn't a familiar voice. She opened her eyes slowly and carefully looked around. The room was a stark clinical white with equipment everywhere. The voice that was shouting was coming from one side of the room from a man in a lab coat.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Dr. She's waking up." A voice on her other side startled her. She jerked, startled, and found out that her movement had been restricted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The man turned "Oh good. Check it's vitals again. We need to make sure the biotracker isn't affecting it negatively."</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Biotracker? What?</span>
  </em>
  <span> Lilly jerked her arms trying to sit up. She was trapped. Glancing down she saw her wrists had been shackled to the edges of the bed and she had some tubes sticking out of her arms. Her torso was bare and electrodes were attached to her chest connecting her to machinery of some kind. At least the binders were gone on her arms. The vest too. She might be able to get out with them gone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Welcome back 437. I've missed you, as have your siblings." The man stood over her looking into her eyes for something she couldn't figure out. "My experiments have stalled in your absence. So glad you've finally returned to me."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Who are you? What are you talking about?" Lilly bit out finally. This man was insane. She had no siblings. And experiments? She didn't even know these people, let alone what they wanted from her. And where was Noctis? She hoped he was safe.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"I'm disappointed in you. How could you not remember your creator? I guess it has been almost forty years, but I'm shocked you don't remember." He turned to another human and told them to make a note to test subject 8443701's memory later.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Definitely insane. She was getting out of here. Now. She tugged on the restraints while his back was turned and she heard the tell-tale groan of them struggling to hold her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>'Hmm?" The man turned back and saw her pulling. "Ah. No. You're not leaving so soon." He pushed something into one of the IVs flowing into her arms. "Just a small sedative. Enough to keep you as weak as that kitten is in your other form."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"No no no no" her protests died off as the sedative took effect. She didn't fall asleep like the potion had made her earlier, but she did calm down until she could barely hold up her head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She wanted answers but he had already turned away and was barking orders at others ignoring her completely. "Have you finished taking those samples? Good. Get those scanners in here. I want scans of everything inside and out. I must see how this separation has affected its growth."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Sir. The decoder results are back and she's still a perfect match from when she was lost. Do you want us to harvest her after the scans are complete?" A different human in a lab coat asked the main one.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"When was her last heat? They won't be viable if she hasn't had one in the last month or so."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Hormone levels indicate it's been a while, sir. Not within the last six months if her previous tests hold true."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"That's a shame." The lead man said. "I would've liked to start that particular experiment again. No matter. No if she's not viable then those samples are lower priority. Are her vitals stable? Good. Where are those scanners?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Here sir!" One of the other scientists called as they rolled in a large machine. They positioned it over her and started it up. She wanted to fight and to try and get away, but the drugs were still holding strong in her system.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Dr. Besithia, sir." The young man with the knife from earlier appeared in the doorway, calling to the lead scientist. "You have one hour to finish. They've gotten the paperwork faster than anticipated and orders are to set her back in with the Prince before they arrive to get her."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"What?" The man demanded angrily. "I was told I would have at least five hours."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"I know Sir. The situation has changed. Orders are to finish up as soon as possible and then I'm to take her back with me." The young man bowed slightly but stood firm in the face of the angry scientist.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Fine." The man, Besithia, spat out. He started throwing out orders faster than Lilly could follow and the others turned into a flurry of activity just this side of frantic. More blood samples were taken, pictures of everything were snapped, and notes jotted down about anything and everything. She was poked and prodded more than she thought possible.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>During the chaos someone must've slipped her something stronger because the next time she opened her eyes, Noctis was above her looking at her with concern on his face.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Noct? What?" Lilly asked groggily.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Hey there kitten. Welcome back. You doing alright? Hey there, go slow!" Noctis tried to stop her from bolting upright in a panic as she remembered everything that had happened.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn't succeed and she started checking him for wounds frantically. He finally caught her wrists and forced her to look at him. "I'm alright, Lilly. Nothing happened to me. I swear. We're safe at home. Nothing can hurt us here."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Home?" Lilly looked around confused. Noct wasn't lying. They were in the main living room of the Prince's suite. "How? The airship. They took you from me. Why did they take you from me? They shouldn't have taken you from me." Her voice rose with each phrase breaking close to panicking again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Lilly. Lilly. Look at me. I'm fine. Nothing happened to me. No one touched me. Ardyn took me into the cockpit of the airship and threw Lucian laws back at me about you. He wouldn't take it at face value that you wore my crest on your collar and cuffs or had my name on your wrist that couldn't be removed. He needed proof of ownership as our laws state. There were some mechanical troubles when getting them but Ignis pulled magic out of his hat, like usual, and made everything run much smoother. The only reason it took so long was that it had to be notarized as genuine and all the noteries had gone home for the night. He had to track one down to get them to witness the papers. As soon as he had that finished he rushed it to our location. They brought you back into my arms and care as soon as it was on the ship." He had finally gotten her to relax and lay back down on the couch. He didn't stop touching her hands and wrists though. He could see the connection was helping her stay calm. "They brought you back unconscious and hurt. What happened after I left?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"What happened?" she shuddered slightly. "First a sleeping potion on an edge of a knife through my hand." She held up her hand. There was a bandages there and she could feel the tingling of the healing wound. "Then when I woke up I was in a medical room. Scientists, machines, blinking lights and computers. I was strapped down but they had removed the vest and cuffs as far as I could see. They had me connected to a bunch of the machines to monitor me. The one head scientist kept asking if my vitals were being affected by a BioTracker they added to me somehow? I don't know what it was."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Noct piped up "Crowe did say she took you to the medical ward instead of the cells as planned. When we got you back, the doctors here said they didn't find anything wrong with you, besides the wound on your hand, but I'll have them do a few more tests to see if they can figure out what this BioTracker is. Do you remember anything else about them? What they wanted? Who they were?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lilly took a deep breath. "One said the name Besithia, but I don't recognize it." There was a flurry of motion behind her that drew her attention. Ignis has started his phone and was about to speak when he noticed her quietly watching. He put the phone down slowly and back into his pocket. She just watched him, unblinkingly, for a few more moments before turning back towards Noctis. He would tell her later, she would make sure of it. "He said something about me being his experiment and that I was finally back after being lost for so long. He wanted to 'see how the separation affected its growth' as he put it. They took so many scans and samples and said so many things. I don't think I can put it all into words. As soon as I tried to get away he put some drugs into an IV in my arm to make me calm down. I couldn't do anything even with all the cuffs gone. I was helpless." She curled up slightly on herself, Noct followed along and curled around her for comfort.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"I couldn't do anything at all, and then a boy, young man really, came in and told the head honcho that he only had an hour with me before I was to be returned to you. I don't know much after that because they must've dosed me again. I passed out and then woke up here. I don't know anything in between. I mean, the crazy man said I had siblings! I don't think I have siblings. I've never even had a home pack before."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"If there are siblings to be found, Lilly, I will look into it immediately. I will not have you worry about this." Ignis piped up from where he had been standing behind her. "Crowe is still undercover so she may be able to gather some information from the ships medical database. If that doesn't pan out, then we have other options we can persu. Do not worry my dear. We will find answers for you."</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gladio's voice from across the room startled her, "Hey Noct? You might want to let the others in now. I think Prom is about to shoot the lock off that door and the remainder are going to rip it off its hinges." She glanced over at him and saw he was holding one of the office doors closed with his body.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"I wasn't going to let her be overwhelmed right when she woke up. Not my fault they were hovering." He grumbled under his breath. "Yeah, you can let them out now." Noct called back over.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lilly watched as Gladio quickly stepped out of the way and the door flew open. Prompto and Justice sprawled flat on their faces in their rush to get out the door. They must've been pushing on it to fall that hard and fast. Lilly had to stifle a giggle at that. The other four shifters filed out of the room at only a slightly more sedate pace. They all zeroed in on Lilly and made a beeline for her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>By some form of astral magic, Justice was actually the first one to here of the group. He knelt in front of her checking her legs and arms.  He slowed over her bandaged arms and looked up into her face to make sure she was truely safe and alright.The others swarmed her as well but he wouldn't be pushed out of the way for any reason.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"I'm alright. Just a little beat up." She shrugged at his incredulous look. "You're not going to believe me if I told you I'm completely fine, so why even try? I can tell you to stop hovering though. Don't make me pull the Alpha card!" He just rolled his eyes and went back to his examination, not saying a thing. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>*****</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Later Justice entered Ignis's office making sure no one had followed him. "Sir? May I have a word? In private, please." He shut and locked the door at Ignis's ascent. They had made sure the room was shifter soundproof (ie. Lilly-proof) years ago after they had found Lilly could hear everything through the doors and walls without trying very hard. She now tended to pout outside the doorway when they kicked her out because she couldn't listen in anymore.</span>
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  <span>He took a deep breath. "It's about Lilliana. I think she's more hurt than she's letting on."</span>
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  <span>Ignis frowned "She was re-examined by the doctors and they didn't find anything wrong with her."</span>
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  <span>"Her base scent has changed.  don't think she even realizes it and I know the others haven't noticed. It's so subtle, like." he stood there searching for a comparison that Ignis would understand. "What are those two tiny oranges that I keep getting mixed up?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Tiny oranges? You mean Mandarins and Clementines?"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"Yeah those! Her base scent has changed but only if you really know what to look for. It usually only happens when something is seriously wrong. I don't know if it's her being hurt physically or if it's a mental trauma. She will probably deny it to the end of her days, but that change tells me something more happened to her that she's not telling anyone about."</span>
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  <span>Ignis contemplated that information quietly for long moment. "Understood. You keep an eye on her and tell me right away if anything else changes. Do not tell the others. They are not the most subtle of creatures and might do something rash. Noctis is already only one step away from keeping her inside at all times after this incident. Keep this confidential and inform me right away if any of the others get wind of this change as well. We will wait and see what happens. Lilly is a strong girl. She will more than likely bounce back from this before anyone else notices, but we will be there just in case." He dismissed Justice with a wave of his hand then went back to his documents. This just added another item on the ever growing ToDo list that had Lilly's name on the top of it. He didn't resent it. This was all for his friends. But he didn't appreciate the extra work and stress it came with. He was going to get to the bottom of everything if it was the last thing he did.</span>
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